The Witch and The Mafia
by LeeArt
Summary: She is the brightest witch of her age, and he is the boss of the Varia. Fate unite them when Hermione and the Varia are chasing down the same man, a most wanted wizard by the name of Antonin Dolohov. Pairings: Hermione/Xanxus, Harry/Blaise
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hello my fellow readers, this is my first attempt on Hermione/Xanxus. Thank you Just2Pretend for being the amazing beta. And for my dear beloved readers, this is for all of you. Enjoy XD

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**Chapter 1: The First of All**

He was the boss of the Varia and she was the brightest witch of her age. He was strong and deadly, loyal to his organisation and determined to be on top of it all; she was brave, strong, intelligent, and loyal to her friends and family. So what did these two have in common? Well, nothing, except thirst, his thirst for power and her thirst for knowledge. They came from two different worlds: He was part of the mafia while she was a witch. Though Hermione was still linked to her muggle heritage, her work chained her to the wizarding world. They had never met nor knew of each other, but there's one thing that was about to drive these two together. A wizard by the name of Antonin Dolohov.

It's been five years since the war ended and Hermione Granger, a twenty-three year old witch, was determined to find the last Death Eater, Dolohov, who had been on the run and was last spotted in Italy. Hermione was willing to follow the lead, but didn't know where to start. The wizarding world or the muggle world? She hated it when she was clueless. If would be easier for her if Dolohov chose to hide in the wizarding world, but if he chose the muggle side... well, it wouldn't be nearly as easy as she wished. But for a purist like Dolohov, hiding amongst the muggles would be a disgrace. His hatred for non-magical people was too great. She sighed in frustration. All she wanted to do was find the wanted wizard, arrest him, and throw him in Azkaban. Clues as to his whereabouts came to Hermione often, but the wily man always managed to slip away. He was too fast when it came to hiding and runing away.

Being an auror really had its advantages, Hermione mused as she continued to look through the gathered information.

As war heroes, Hermione, Harry, and Ron were given recognition by the wizarding community. After the war, Hermione went back to Hogwarts to finish her final year while Harry and Ron went straight to auror training. They were accepted and Hermione joined them a year later. In less than four years, Harry had been chosen to become head of the Auror Department with Ron as his deputy. Hermione was their top auror.

Harry had shocked everyone at The Burrow (except Hermione and Ron) when he announced that he was gay, but he was easily accepted with open arms. He was now very happy with Blaise Zabini, a former Slytherin, who he had been with for more than three years now. This surprised the ferret when he first found out, nearly giving him a heart attack. And though he was slowly accepting it, the Malfoy heir still found it hard to believe his best friend was not lusting after someone of the opposite gender. Ron was happily engaged to Luna, and Ginny came out of the closet as a lesbian. Only Hermione had been aware of her sexual orientation, having found out a long time before that. The young red-head has been in a relationship with Katie Bell for the last three years. They were both chasers for the Holyhead Harpies.

As for Hermione, she had never been in a relationship. She had gone to the Yule Ball with Viktor Krum, but only as friends and the only kiss she received was from Fred Weasley, and that was through a game of truth or dare two years ago.

She and her two best friends had been tracking and capturing the remaining Death Eaters since the fall of Voldemort. Antonin Dolohov was, by far, the most difficult to catch, and the most dangerous. If he were still in England, Harry and Ron wouldn't mind tracking him down, but he wasn't. He was in Italy. Hermione took the risk upon herself to follow his trail. Her two best friends were like brothers, and they had people waiting for them. There was no one for Hermione back home, so she was willing to be the one to capture Dolohov. She hadn't planned for anything more. She hadn't expected to fall in love with someone in the mafia, particularly the boss of a special assassination squad.

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**Somewhere in Italy**

It had been less than a week since Hermione arrived in Italy and met with her informants. She was determined to find him – he and Bellatrix Lestrange had caused her so much pain in the past. She was very thankful to Mrs. Weasley for having killed off that evil witch. The scars on her body were enough to encourage her to bring the wanted Death Eater to justice. News had reached her ears that Dolohov was now being hunted by a group of muggles. Not just any common group, but strong and dangerous. It had started when he entered someone's territory and was the center of the chaos that happened in the area. He thought he had the upper hand with being a wizard, but he was dead wrong.

Hermione came across a town when she first saw him and his subordinates. She was enjoying a drink at a café when they came and sat not far from her. At first she simply ignored them, thinking they were muggles with attitude, but there was something that got her attention, though she wasn't sure what. She could not tear her eyes from him. The man was both scary and handsome, and the scar on his left cheek and forehead merely enhanced the attractive qualities. What intrigued her the most was that she could feel something flowing within him. It was an energy of some sort, but she knew he wasn't a wizard. This 'power' he held seemed so strong. If looks could kill, she was sure many would have fallen. The look he sported was fierce and constant, and scary enough to make one tremble at the knees.

Hermione was unaware she had been staring for quite a long time. She was lost in her thoughts of this man with his perfect looks; his height, his broad shoulders, his fit body, and even the scar didn't lessen his perfection... and then his scent! Though they were not sitting side by side, she was still somehow able to smell him and it was driving her senses crazy. It wasn't until he turned around and looked at her that she realised she had been gawking. Hermione was sure he had sensed her looking, but wasn't sure if it had annoyed him.

Hermione quickly turned away with a beet red face. She blamed it on her raging hormones. Well, she reasoned to herself, she was a young woman and had never been in love before, and this man was stimulating her senses. Who could blame her? Luckily, it seemed no one took notice of her odd behaviour. Well, except for him. She mentally berated herself for getting so distracted while on duty. _"What the hell were you thinking, Hermione Jean Granger. You have an important mission here: Find and capture that bloody Dolohov, not ogle some mysterious, scary yet handsome man... no. No, no no... I need to stop this, I need to stop this... Oh what the hell. I need to leave this place, NOW."_

Hermione quickly finished her drink and called for the waitress so she could pay. She felt the man's eyes on the back of her neck. She really needed to get out of this place. She wasn't here for vacation or for any other frivolities. She was here because she had a task, an important mission. She needed to track down and capture Dolohov immediately before he escaped again. _"Harry and Ron are going to laugh if they find out about this," _her traitorous mind chirped as she left the café. She had refused to look back so therefore didn't notice the look the man had given her. His subordinates ignored him, knowing how pissed he'd be if he were disturbed. None took notice of what he was looking at.

Hermione had chosen to do this mission alone, but not without protests from Harry and Ron, who both insisted she had least take a partner. She had declined, knowing that if too many people were inolved, Dolohov would have noticed and disappeared again, making it harder for them to track him. Luckily, they had informants across the world that helped them track down their most wanted enemies. Here in Italy, Hermione's informants had given her details on the wealth of information they had found and collected about Dolohov and his activities. Most Death Eaters figured the best way to hide was by pretending to be muggles. After the war the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, had tighted security in the magical world. More and more aurors were being dispatched to find any remaining followers of the now deceased Dark Lord. They were no longer safe in the wizarding community, so they fled to the muggle world.

Hermione approached her hotel and quickly walked into the elevator. Taking a deep breath to clear her mind, she willed the elevator to hurry so she could get to her room and take a nice, long shower. Today had been tiring but it paid off. She had finally located the bastard. She instructed her informants to keep their eyes on him, study his schedule, and report back so she could plan for their next move before calling for back-up and capturing him. The elevator finally reached her floor and Hermione sprinted to her hotel room. The shower was calling for her and she had a report to write. And a stunning man with scars on his face to dream of.

xoxoxo

Xanxus watched as the young woman departed the café in a hurry. Usually he would ignore people staring at him, they were weaklings constantly in need of protection. But this woman, for some reason, attracted his attention. He found her beautiful, especially when she blushed and her eyes gleamed as if she were focused on her heart's desire. He snorted quietly at his thoughts. There was one thing he was able to sense from this mystery woman: She was not afraid. She shied away from him, yes, but it wasn't out of fear.

At the age of thirty, Xanxus had never paid special attention to anyone. There were many women who had tried to win his affection, but none of them interested him, so he ignored them. Being the boss of the Varia had its perks – people looked up to him, saluted him, girls and women wanted to get near him. Some were even willing to offer their services in bed, but they didn't appeal to him. In fact, all they received was a kick in the rear and derisively told to whore themselves elsewhere if they were in such a need.

He preferred to be in control and only ever went after what he really wanted. And right now, there were only two things he really wanted: Find and beat the hell out of the man who had been recently causing havoc in his terrority and to find the young woman who left only minutes ago, the one who caught his attention. His instincts told him they'd meet again.

"Boss, are you alright?" came the voice that annoyed him the most.

"Levi, please don't disturb our boss. Nee... boss, do you want more wine?" Lussuria offered. Levi looked very annoyed at having been told off.

Xanxus made a noise of agreement as Lussuria poured more wine into his glass. The Varia Sun Guardian knew his boss too well. Squalo rolled his eyes.

The Varia Rain Guardian had also noticed the pretty young brunette who recently vacated the café, he also noticed the way Xanxus looked at her. It would be unprecedented, but Squalo wondered if their boss was finally showing an interest in women. _Or a particular woman_, he mused.

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_**The very next day**_

Hermione stood in front of the mirror in her hotel room, studying herself. She realised her hair was getting longer, but it was still manageable. She was glad to be rid of the bushy mane from her childhood, and now it was slightly wavy and fell to her shoulders. Her informants sent her a note earlier so she planned to meet with them later that far they have come close to catching Dolohov, but he still managed to slip through their grasp. He was still around though, and according to the information she received, the crazed wizard had landed himself with massive injuries. He was weak at the moment, and in no condition to use magic. If he were to try to apparate, it would likely kill him.

Wearing a simple cream coloured camisole, tight jeans, a black hooded cardigan, and black boots to match, she was satisfied with her reflection. She checked her sleeve to make sure her wand was there, then grabbed her small beaded bag before leaving the hotel room for her meeting with the informants, a muggleborn witch and wizard, at a nearby café. She had just reached the lobby when her phone rang. It was another advantage with the war being over; the wizarding community was slowly accepting muggle devices and so far, mobile phones were the most requested items. Though owls were faster than muggle post, mobiles were faster and easier than both. She answered her phone to one of her informants' panicked voice.

"Stella, what's going on?" Hermione asked worriedly.

"Something's happened. Dolohov is fighting against a group of muggles, the same muggles that have been hunting him," came the frantic response. Stella was on tracking duty when she saw the group of muggles, who she recognised as the Varia, approach the wanted Death Eater in a nearby forest. She and her fellow informant had heard about them from the locals, and of their connection with the mafia organisation. She had seen their abilities firsthand and knew how dangerous these men could be. With that in mind, and knowing she'd be easily detected should she stay, she quickly left the location and contacted Hermione from a nearby building.

"What? Where are they? Where are you right now? Just... stay there and wait for me. And don't forget to contact Alejandro as well. Keep your guard up, all right?" Hermion cautioned and quickly headed towards the location Stella was waiting for her at. This just got a lot worse. She feared for the muggles, not Dolohov. She knew what he was capable of and his viciousness towards non-magicals. She had never met or seen this group and only knew what Stella and Alejandro had imparted with her. Hermione had always wanted to see what they looked like, as they often described them as very strong, especially the one they called boss.

She ran as quickly as possible, fearing for Stella and the muggles. Strong or not, they didn't know what Dolohov could do, and killing muggles was said to be his specialty. Hermione prayed, hoping there would be no bloodshed. Not today, not on her mission.

xoxoxo

Xanxus growled. The trash he had been tracking seemed very strong this time around. He had enough of this man wreaking havoc in his terroritory. The wound he sustained from their previous fight appeared to be healed already, though the dark haired man was still limping from the kick he received from Lussuria before suddenly disappearing. He looked strange using a stick to fight against them just like last time and, like before, he was taking them for fools.

"VROOOIIII….DON'T LET HIM ESCAPE," Squalo screeched loudly, launching himself at the stranger with a sword attached to his artificial left hand, ready to strike the enemy down.

The man was able to move faster, though not as fast as when he had first fought them. He appeared to be looking for trouble by the way he stared his opponents down. Xanxus felt that this was no ordinary man. He was confident they would be able to defeat him, and though he felt like this was a stupid joke – one man against many - his instincts told him to be wary of this stranger, to be extra careful. He eyed the stranger carefully, looking for weaknesses while his subordinates took turns fighting him. It was odd that he would be able to take on several people, despite his injuries. What scared and intrigued the boss of the Varia the most were the peculiar abilities the man possessed.

He remembered the moment the man had appeared in this town weeks ago. Since his arrival, a few people had been injured, or worse, killed. They had no idea what was causing it at first, believing that it might be a disease of some sort – but there were no reports about any diseases that had struck the area. In fact, the deaths were weird. Among those who were killed or injured, only one suffered from heart disease and the person was still in a coma, while the rest were very healthy. After going over these facts, they suspected the victims were jeopardised or killed by someone else; an enemy of some sort. Things became murkier when, according to their families, they had no enemies whatsoever. This frustrated Xanxus. It was happening on his terrority and he was helpless, having no idea what was going on or who did this. That was, until he saw him, this man, injure a civilian in an unusual way as if he were using some sort of black magic. From that day on he and his subordinates had been hunting him, but the stranger was both cunning and dangerous. Xanxus and his men always had the upper hand when they engaged him battle, but this man was strong.

xoxoxo

Dolohov really wanted to use his magic – wand or wandless – but using too much, especially in his current condition, would enable the aurors to detect him easily. He knew that one of their top aurors was pursuing him here in Italy. He was able to disapparate, but his magic has been weakened since the last fight with Granger and Potter. The last spell from the Mudblood Granger damaged his wand so he was only able to apparate as far as Italy. He used to have an ally here, a fellow Death Eater, but his ally was dead now; he had killed himself when he was captured by aurors less than a month ago. What disgusted Dolohov the most was that, because he was easily recognised in the wizarding world, he had to live amongst muggles to survive. And now he was fighting these filthy creatures _again_, the same group he had been fighting since his arrival.

And these muggles, they were damn strong. He had never thought they could be this formidable, and they were doing the unimaginable. One man could summon electrical lightning from his weird looking umbrellas, one could kick extremely hard while another could control knives, one had his sword attached to his weird looking hand, another man or young boy could create illusions and finally, the one they called boss, had this weird flame in his hand and whenever it appeared his subordinates looked afraid.

Dolohov had not been idle since his arrival. He had injured and killed several people since his appearance here weeks ago. Two of the people whose lives he ended were the ones who had witnessed his arrival and saw him using magic. He could still hurt or kill without using much of his magic as he still had a few potions that could kill quietly and effectively, and he used them when he needed to steal food and other necessary items for survival. But now he was running out and he couldn't use his magic too long without being noticed by magical law enforcement.

He pursed his lips. He really needed to get rid of the people he was currently fighting thanks to what they caused him to do, the filthy abominations. He was a strong, pureblood wizard and he should not be afraid to wield his magic, but being the last Death Eater still on the run didn't make him any more powerful. He could use the Unforgivables, but that would only give away his location that much quicker; something he didn't want to happen. Dolohov snarled at his circumstances, having no choice but to use his wand and magic.

xoxoxo

Hermione moved as fast as she could with Stella close by while Alejandro followed from behind. She needed to get to the battle quickly. Dolohov must not escape and she did not want any of the muggles killed. Not under her watch. As she and Stella approached, Hermione sensed magic being used; Dolohov was using his magic against the muggles.

"_Oh no."_

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So, here you go, the first chapter. I hope that all of you will enjoy this XD

Your reviews, comments and the sort of it are very much welcome XD


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** So, my dear fellow readers, this is the second chapter of this story. I hope that all of you will enjoy this one XD

Thank you to Just2Pretend for being such an amazing beta, you are a star XD

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**Chapter 2: The Confrontation**

"Oh no."

Once Hermione and Stella reached the location, they quickly hid behind a crop of trees and what they saw shocked Hermione the most. She recognised the people fighting Dolohov, especially the leader, the very handsome and dangerous looking man she saw yesterday. He and his subordinates were fighting against the wanted Death Eater and one appeared to be injured badly. From the way the injury looked, Hermione could guess that Dolohov had used the slicing curse on him. That bastard.

The two women continued to watch worriedly with wide eyes. Hermione wanted to interfere and capture her target as quickly as possible, but was unsure as to how she could do so without grabbing the attention of the muggles. Turning to Stella, she quickly explained the next course of action.

"Go and send a patronus to Harry, inform him that we found Dolohov. Tell him to send backup as quickly as possible, go now." The younger girl nodded her head and left.

Hermione turned her attention back to the fighting not far from her. Her view was clear and, fortunately, she was able to see everything that was happening. Stella and Alejandro were right, these muggles were strong, especially _him. _She didn't know why, but she was worried for the man and didn't want him to get hurt. Leaning forward a bit, she saw Dolohov take out his wand and aim it at the group he was fighting. Her heart pounded and Hermione _knew _she needed to get there quickly. She didn't care if she was seen, she wasn't about to let Dolohov injure or kill them. Her mind made up, she exited her hiding place and ran to them, just as Dolohov was about to attack. His wand was aimed at the one they called Boss.

"_Avada kedav-_"

"_Stupefy_," Hermione shouted, cutting Dolohov off and throwing him backwards. The wizard was shocked but it was promptly replaced with anger as he saw Hermione Granger standing there looking at him. He growled his displeasure at being interrupted and focused his attention on the muggleborn.

"Mudblood," Dolohov snarled.

"Dolohov," Hermione responded. Her wand was held tightly in her hand, knowing how dangerous and cunning the Death Eater was. Her eyes were fixed on the criminal before her. The group of muggles watched anxiously and not a little astonished.

Xanxus couldn't believe his eyes. The young woman from the café yesterday was here and she had appeared out of nowhere. To make things more confusing, she was also using that stick the man they were fighting had used against them. What was going on? Who were these people?

Hermione didn't care whether the muggles were there or not; she was not allowing any blood to be shed here and most definitely wasn't going to allow Dolohov to hurt the leader. She had no idea why she felt that way in particular, but she trusted her instincts.

"Looks like you want to protect these muggles. Well, considering that filthy heritage of yours it shouldn't be a surprise. Isn't that right, mudblood?" Dolohov sneered at her. His wand was aimed at her.

Hermione clenched her wand tightly but otherwise showed no reaction. She was not going to allow him to insult her or her heritage. Muggleborn or not, it was who she was and she was proud of it.

"I think they are capable of taking care of themselves, seeing the way they had 'taken care' of you," she retorted. The wizard snapped.

"How dare you, mudblood! You and these filthy muggles will die!" Dolohov barked harshly, hatred clear on his face and in his voice

"Like I'm going to allow that to happen, Dolohov," Hermion spat, ready to take on the wizard if he so much as twitched towards them. They were both in a fighting stance, ready to start their own battle, when a voice interrupted.

"VROOOIIIIII…WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE AND WHO THE FUCKING HELL ARE YOU?" Squalo yelled, pointing his sword at them, but it was trained on Dolohov. The Varia Rain Guardian had enough of all the weirdness and trouble going on since the man with the stick came here. And now this young woman who they, or rather he and his boss, Xanxus, saw yesterday had joined them. She was the one Xanxus had his eyes on. He had been pondering it since the incident, of how his boss seemed drawn to her. It was new, as his boss had never been like this before, never attracted to anyone. But this woman was different, even Squalo could see that. Now here she was with a weird stick in her hand, just like the sick bastard that had been terrorising their territory recently.

Hermione fidgeted in her spot. She couldn't take her eyes off Dolohov, fearing that he would make his move then and would probably win if she did. On the other hand, she also wanted the muggles to leave for their own safety; but how to convince them to do so? She saw their strength and determination to take the Death Eater down, and that really surprised her. No muggle had fought against a wizard before and survived, but she knew these people were different. She absently wondered whether Stella had managed to contact Harry, but was more focused on her and the muggles' safety. Especially the one with the scars on his face. She knew Dolohov was bent on killing her, and them, and leaving to perhaps another province. She was not going to allow that to happen.

Antonin Dolohov was enraged. He didn't like how he had been unable to kill these muggles with their unusual abilities and now the mudblood was here to capture him. He waited for a loophole, a gap that he could exploit and would grant his escape. He noticed the Granger girl fidget, having exposed magic in front of muggles, but he had, too, when he was about kill the scar-faced man and his damned followers. Then he saw an opportunity.

"_Crucio,_" he hissed, but wasn't fast enough.

Hermione dodged the curse.

"_Petrificus Totalus,_" she called out in retaliation and Dolohov fell the the ground. Hermione took his wand and silenced him. Since his magic had been weakening since their last fight and had yet to be healed, he was unable to do any wandless magic.

The Varia watched in stunned silence. Never in their lives had they witnessed something like this. Well, sort of. They had seen and contributed to many unexpected occurences, especially with being part of the mafia, but never like this. This was different and so were the two they were watching.

Xanxus kept his eyes on Hermione. With guns in his hands, he was ready to strike if anything went wrong, though deep inside he doubted that she would cause them problems.

"Boss, what should we do?" Levi asked. The Varia Lightning Guardian didn't recognise the woman, having not noticed her at the café yesterday. Most of the Varia members were ready to attack, though they were held back by Squalo. He, too, doubted that the young woman would cause any trouble.

Xanxus growled as he watched Dolohov lying stiffly on the ground. Though the man wore an emotionless expression, the Boss of the Varia could guess the prone man was very much angry and full of hatred towards them. Xanxus then turned to Hermione.

"Hey, who the hell are you? What is going on here and who the hell is that bastard?" His voice was harsh as he glared at both Hermione and Dolohov.

Hermione was in a tight spot. She shouldn't have exposed magic to muggles; she was an auror and should know better. Harry and Kingsley won't be happy if they find out about this. _"Harry is so going to kill me. Oh Merlin, what should I do?"_ she thought desperately.

"Hey, my Boss asked you a question, damned woman," Levi reminded rudely, resulting in a hard kick to his gut by Squalo. Levi may not have noticed, but Squalo saw how tightly Xanxus had gripped his guns and the glare he shot the stupid Lightning Guardian. He should consider himself lucky Xanxus didn't shoot him for yelling at the woman. What happens would be between the boss and her.

Hermione flinched when the silver-haired man glowered at the groaning man that had spoken. If looks could kill, the man would surely be dead by now.

The young witch found herself in a dilemma. Should she or should she not tell them? Muggles weren't supposed to find out about magic, and she ought to obliviate them and she would, usually. But the handsome with scars on his face had a strong effect on her and she found herself unwilling to do so. There was something about him that had drawn her attention yesterday, something she couldn't ignore then or now. It was some sort of feeling: A crush, love? She felt lost.

Then there's Dolohov. If she told the muggles, she'd be in trouble. She was sure the damned wizard would tell the Wizengamot that she had spilled their secret to a bunch of muggles.

"Hey, what did you do to this scum?" Xanxus barked, though his question sounded more like an order. He sneered down at Dolohov.

"I petrified him," Hermione answered truthfully, though she cursed herself a moment later for telling a muggle about this. Xanxus raised an eyebrow and looked at her sceptically.

"You… what? Don't fuck with me," he cautioned, his veins twitching. He couldn't take this joke, though something inside him said it wasn't a joke and to be careful.

"I'm not," Hermione said impatiently. She had no time to lie or joke about this.

Xanxus hissed through gritted teeth and glared at her angrily. "Then tell me what you did to him."

"Like I said, I petrified him. End of story," she snapped back, irritated.

Hermione and Xanxus seemed to have a glaring contest. Neither wanted to back down, but at the same time, they were attracted to each other, though neither would admit it. Hermione was drawn into his deep, terrifying eyes. Terrifying, yes, but she could tell that it made him attractive.

A part of Hermione was worried. She had Dolohov under her control, but she was scared that he might escape her, or worse, attack her from behind. Judging from the injuries Dolohov had suffered, Hermione realised she didn't want to be on this man's bad side, or that of his subordinates. In fact, she wanted to make peace with him and to know his name. Well, better now than never.

"Well, I think we should push this misunderstanding aside. Let me introduce myself. My name is Hermione, Hermione Granger, and may I know yours, sir?" Hermione asked politely. She kept both wands in her sleeve, wordlessly telling him she meant no harm.

Xanxus still looked sceptical but saw the sincerity in her eyes and the slight blush on her face. He could not deny that he was attracted her, but there was no way in hell he would voice it out loud.

"The name's Xanxus, and what the hell are you?" he replied, sounding a bit harsh. Despite his attraction, he needed to be careful. He was aware that he was usually the type to directly attack his opponent, either with strength or verbally, but he suspected this young woman was not someone he could easily mess with.

Hermione looked at the rather straightforward man. How was she going to admit that she was a witch? From the look on his face, she confidently assumed he would think she was pulling another stupid joke on him. She was sure he would have a good laugh, not to mention his subordinates. She prayed Harry would arrive soon regardless of knowing that for him, and others, travelling from England to here might take a while.

"Hey, I asked you a question here," Xanxus said, snapping Hermione out of her thoughts.

"Well, if you want to know so much, then I'm a... " Just as Hermione was about to answer, they heard cracks and pops nearby. Hermione surmised that her prayers were answered, and that Harry and the rest had arrived. Xanxus and his men looked around, suddenly alert, wondering what the sound could be. Weapons were held at the ready and Hermione desperately wanted to tell them that it was okay, that nothing bad would happen, but she doubted they would listen. She had to try, though.

"No, stop. It's all right. Don't worry,," she assured them as they went into fighting mode. They turned their attention to her and glared at her. Hermione only barely held back a flinch.

"Vroooiiii…. What the hell are you talking about?" Squalo asked. He quickly turned around when he heard footsteps coming towards them. The Varia were ready to strike but were held back by Hermione.

"No, don't. You misunderstand. It's the backup, my backup," Hermione told them. She shivered when Xanxus turned his glare on her but knew she had to stand her ground if she wanted to avoid another fight from happening.

Xanxus was surprised. People usually fell to their knees the moment he glared at them, but she was different. He could still sense that she was terrified, but yet she braved herself to stand her ground. What an intriguing little thing. It reminded him of that trash Tsunayoshi Sawada.

Suddenly, a black-haired man appeared with a few people who were oddly dressed, with a familiar stick in their hands. Who the hell were these people?

"Hermione, are you alright?"

"Yes, Harry, I'm okay," she assured her newly arrived companion. Hermione nodded to both Stella and Alejandro, who came with Harry and a few of the aurors. Xanxus watched as this Harry went to her and hugged her tightly. He felt something weird rumbling in his stomach, like he was jealous and angry. How dare that man touch her?

"Ushishishi, more weaklings wanted to join in the battle I see," Bel, the tiara-wearing Varia's Storm Guardian, commented. His grin was as unsettling as the knives in his hands.

"VROOOIIII….what's this? More people to fight against us?" Squalo asked loudly, more towards Harry and the newcomers than Hermione. He didn't dare point his sword towards Hermione, knowing the consequences and possible punishment he would receive from Xanxus.

"Oh hohoho…what a handsome looking man. Can I take you home after this? I really need someone to cuddle with after all this fighting," Lussuria purred as he pouted his lips, making a smooching sound to Harry and the other male aurors. The rest of the Varia gawked, while some turned slightly green in disgust.

"Hermione, what's going on here? Who are they?" Harry asked, barely restraining from freaking out. He looked at them in fear and bewilderment. Weren't they muggles?

Hermione found herself in yet another dilemma. How the hell was she going to tell Harry about the battle that took place earlier? She was positive that if Harry found out they were muggles, he and the rest of the aurors would obliviate them, despite what they did to Dolohov. As much as she would usually agree, her heart was against it. Hermione turned to the group of muggles and stood face to face with Xanxus. Her pulse quickened. If Harry obliviated them, she would never see him again. Why was this happening to her? Had she fallen in love with him?

"_Merlin, God, and whoever else is listening... please help me. I'm so confused. Is this what love is called?" _She felt her heart skip when she thought of that particular word.

"Hermione, Hermione. Hey can you hear me, HERMIONE," Harry called loudly, bringing Hermione back to the outside world.

"Yes, yes, what is it Harry?" Hermione asked, oblivious to the weird look Harry was giving her. He then looked between Hermione and Xanxus, back and forth. Had something happened between them before his arrival?

Suddenly, Harry recognised the look in Hermione's eyes. It was the same look he had whenever he looked at Blaise. Oh dear Merlin, his best friend had fallen in love with this man. The question was whether this man was wizard or muggle, though he didn't look to be the former. He hoped Hermione remembered the Oath of Secrecy.

"Hermione-"

"What the hell are these scum?" Xanxus cut in angrily. He glared at the pair, though it was mostly focused on Harry. And Harry now knew they were facing a bunch of muggles.

"Oh hell, what are we going to do?

* * *

So, here you go, the second chapter. Hope that all of you will like it. All reviews and comments are most welcome XD

If there's any questions please PM me XD


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